Method of mining coal



Sept. 27, 1938. J. F. JOY

METHOD oF MINING coAL original Filed Dec. 2, 1935 5 Sheets-Shea?l 2A Sept. 27, 1938. J. F. JOY

` METHOD oF MINING COAL Original Filed Dec. 2, 1953 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Sept. 27, 1938; .1. F. JOY

METHOD OF MINING COAL Original Filed Deo. 2, 1933 5 SheetsfSheet 4 Sept. Z7, 1938. J. F. JoY

i METHOD OF MINING COAL Y Original Filed Dec. 2, 1933 5 Sheets-Shea?l 5 Patented Sept. 27, 1938 PATENT OFFICE-g METHOD OF MINING `COAL Joseph F. Joy, Claremont, N. H., assignor` to Sullivan-Machinery Company, Chicago, I1l.,'a corporation of Massachusetts v Original application December 2, 1933, Serial No. 700,681. Divided and this application October 7, 1937', SellNO. 167,780

5 claims. (C1. .26ai).

VThis invention relates to an improved mining method, and more particularly to improved methods of mining coal in coal mines.

An object of this invention is to provide im- 5 proved methods of mining coal wherein the use of explosives is entirely eliminated. Another object is to provide an improved method of mining` coalr inv mines wherein the coal at the coal face is divided up in blocksor cubes and therel0 after dislodged from the coal seam wholly without the use oi explosives, thereby not only resultingin more safety to the machine operators, butN also producing coal in more desirable com- Y mercial form. Otherfobjects and advantages of the invention will, however, more fully appear in the course of thefollowing description and as more particularly pointed out in the appended claims. Y I rIl'his application is a division of my copending" application Ser. No. 700,681, filed Dec. 2, 1933,A YIn the accompanying drawings there is shown for purposes of illustration one form which the invention may assumein practice.

`Fig. l is a side elevational view of a coalmining l machine of a design particularly adapted to use in performance of the improved Vmining methods.

gi 2 is a plan view of the mining machine shownin Fig. l. v K Fig. 3 is a plan view of a mine chamberor working place showing one method of mining chambers to which the invention is applicable.

VFig. 4- is a vertical cross section through the chamber of Fig. 3, showing a relatively thin c oal seam with the machine invplace for mininguchambers by the improved methods.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the mine chamber of Y Fig. 4 as it appears 'at the conclusion of the improved mining operations.

Fig. 6 is a plan view showing the application of the machine of the invention to the mining ofentries by the improved method.

Fig. 7 is a vertical section through the mine entry shown-inFig. 6..

Fig. 8 shows a Inodication of the method of mining chambers. t

In Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings there is shown a coal mining machine having relatively great flexibility, range and capacity, and having associated therewith dislodging means whereby the improved methods of mining coal may be performed. Tne mining machine generally comprise s'a portable base l consisting of. a wheeled truck adapted to travel along a mine trackway.

Mounted on the'truck is a horizontal turntable 2' having in turn mounted thereon an adjustable supporting structure 3 fora kerf cutter 4.

TheI supporting structure 3 comprises an elons i gated boom 5 pivotally mounted onthe forward 5 endoi' the' turntableto lswing vin a vertical direction with respect thereto and 'consisting oi a rear boom portion l and a front boom portion l', the latter being 'mounted' on the rearboom portion to revolve relative theretov about the l0 longitudinal axis of the boom. Pivotally mounted on the outer extremity of the front boom 'por-A tion is a cutter head 8 by which the keri cutter is carried. The cutter headr is pivotally mounted onthe front boom portion on an axis arranged l5 at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the boom'and the keri cutter is' 'pivotal1y'-mounted on the cutter head' toY lswing' relative -thereto aboutY an axis at right angles to the'pivotal axis of the cutterhead. Thefk'erfcutter is of the 20 so-called." narrow kerf type and vconsists of an elongated, relatively thin, plane cutter blade 9 having guided for circulationabout itsy margin an endless cutter'chain l0. Propellingi'n'echa Y nism is provided for propelling the machinealong 2'5 the mine trackway at a relatively high transportv speed or. at a relatively low speed appropriate for cutting. A lock is provided for 'locking the cutter` blade in its different angular positions y of adjustment about its pivotal axis with respect 30 to the cutterV head. Hydraulically operated meansv is provided,v for rotating the turntable, for swinging the boom, rotating the outer boom 'por tion about the boom axis and for tilting the cutter head, comprising a pair oih'ydraulic turn` 85 table rotating cylindersv Il", ulI, fh5ldraulicf boom swinging cylinders l2, hydraulic lrotating cylinders I3,I3'for revolving the front boom portion and a hydraulic cylinder Ill for tilting the cutter head relative vtoV the boom. It will thus be seen 40 that the turntable l2 may bev rotated relative to the truck, the boom 5 swung'vertically about its pivot,` the front boom portion 1 Vrevolvedrela-v4` tiveto the rear boom portion 6, the cutter head 'tilted relative to theboom and the cutter blade Sswung about its pivot vrelative to the cutter`V head,r to enable the adjustment of the ker cutter into any desired'cutting position'with respectto the coal face. A hydraulic jack Il'a-v is provided at the axial center of the turntable 50 andengag'eable with the roof of the mine gal-A lery for anchoring the machine on the trackway duringcertainj of the'mining operations. As this mining machine is clearly described in my' copending application, Ser.v Np.' 700,681, men- 55 duit I8 to a connection I9 on tioned above, and does not per se enter into this invention, further description and illustration of the detailed structure thereof is considered unnecessary. The dislodging means associated with the coal mining machine, also clearly described in the above mentioned copending application, comprises a breaker pad I 6 in the form of an expansible rubber envelope connected through a rigid conduit I I` and a exible conthe machine so that hydraulic iiuid under pressure may be supplied from the hydraulic system of the machine to the breaker pad to expandthe latter.

To mine or continue the mining of a mine gallery or entry in its forward direction by the improved block-forming method (Figs. l and 6), the mining machine is advanced along the track way by its propelling mechanism at high or low speed until the kerf cutter 4 is adjacent to the end wall of the gallery. To cut the bottom kerf in the end wall of the mine gallery, the kerf cutter is brought into a position approximately coincident with the mine ioor by proper adjustment of the supporting structure 3 for the kerf cutter, this being accomplished byr lowering the boom 5 by Vmeans of the boom swinging cylinders I2, thereby tilting the boom 5 downward and at the same time operating the cutter head tilting cylinderrld, thereby retaining the level of the kerf cutter in a position horizontal with the mine oor while the boom is being lowered. The kerf cutter now rests approximately on the mine oor in a horizontal plane. The turntable 2 is now swung horizontally by the turntable rotating cylinders II until the tip of the kerf cutter is in the corner between the side wall and the end wall of the mine gallery. To make the sumping cut, the propelling mechanism of the machine is now set in operation, causing the machine to advance along the trackway in a longitudinal direction; meanwhile the cutter chain is travelling about the margin of the cutter blade, cutting its way into the end wall of the mine gallery in the lower corner thereof. When the usable part of the kerf cutter is buried itsV full length in the mine wall (Figs. 1 and 6), the forward movement of the machine is halted.

A sumping cut may be made in the side wall by manipulating the turntable swinging cylinders II and the head tilting cylinder I4 simultaneously, as shown in the upper right hand'corner of Fig. 3. In this way, the kerf cutter is maintained perpendicular to the working face while the turntable 2 is swung to force the kerf cutter to cut its way inward. To complete the bottom kerf, the machine is now anchored by the hydraulic jack I5 against the mine roof, and by admitting pressure fluid to the turntable rotating cylinders II, the turntable 2 is swung sidewise through an angular path, carrying'with it the cutting mechanism which it supports: the cutter chain during this operation cuts a fanshaped kerf deep in the end of the mine wall (Fig. 3). When the sidewise swinging ofthe turntable has been completed, so that the tip of the kerf cutter now has reached the position which the gallery wall will have when extended, the rotation of the turntable is halted andthe machine released from its anchor with the mine gallery roof. The machine:` is then propelled backward along the trackway, causing the ,tip of the kerf cutter to trace a path coincident with the proposed extension of the minegallery sidev wall, and thus completing the bottom kerf. 'Ihe backward motion of the machine is halted when the tip of the kerf cutter emerges again into the mine gallery, completing the bottom horizontal kerf.

To make the top kerf in the end of the mine gallery parallel to the bottom kerf, the cutter head 8 is now inverted by operating the hydraulic cylinders I3 for revolving the front boom portion 'I, thereby rotating the front boom portion and the cutter head and kerf cutter connected to it. The cutter head 8 now occupies the inverted position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, but with the kerf cutter extending forwardly. By admitting pressure fluid to the boom swingingcylinders I 2,and simultaneously admitting pressure fluid to the cutter head tilting cylinder I4, the boom 5 is raised and at the same time the kerf cutter maintained parallel to the mine floor. The kerf cutter comes to rest in a position adjacent to the mine roof and approximately parallel to the mine door. The boom 5 is now swung sidewise exactly as in making the bottom kerf, until the tip of the kerf cutter rests in the upper corner between the ceiling, the end wall and the side wall. The sumping cut is now made as before by advancing the machine along the mine trackway, causing the tip of the kerf cutter to cut its yway into the mine end wall until all of the usable length of the kerf cutter has penetrated the coal seam. 'Ihe machine is now halted and is anchored by the hydraulic jack I5 against the mine gallery ceiling. The sidewise kerf is now completed by admitting pressure fluid to the turntable rotating cylinders II, causing the kerf cutter to execute an angular kerf exactly similar and parallel to the corresponding bottom kerf, pivoting around theturntable axis. When the fan-shaped top kerf has been completed, and the tip of the kerf cutter coincides with the proposed extension of the mine gallery side wall, the anchor with the mine roof is released and the machine is caused to move backward along the trackway, Vwithdrawing the kerf cutter from the coal seam and completing the top kerf. It is obvious that by a repetition of the operations just described, kerfs may be cut in a horizontal or angularplane at any point intermediate the coal seam between the roof and floor thereof. This makes possible the cutting out of stratied bands of dirt or impurities that may exist in the coal seam and the definite separation of such dirt or impurities from the coal during the mining process.

To make the shearing or vertical kerfs, pressure fluid is admitted to the cutter head rotating cylinders I3, causing them to rotate the front boom portion 1 through a `quarter turn until the plane of the kerf cutter is vertical. The turntable 2 is then swung sidewise by admitting pressure iluid to the turntable rotating cylinders II and simultaneously to the cutterrhead tilting cylinder I4 until the bottom of the kerf cutter rests againstthe sidewall of the mine gallery. The booml 5 is then raised until the kerf cutter tip rests in one of the upper corners between the end wall, side .wall and ceiling. The sumping cut is now per- 2,13 irso ter cut a fan-shaped vertical kerf.'v When'the tip of the kerf cutter reaches the proposed extension of the door level, the boomswinging shalted, the machine released from its anchor with the roof, and the machine caused to move backward along the trackway, withdrawing the kerf rcutter from the mine wall and completing the vertical kerf.

The vertical kerf on the opposite side ,of the mine gallery is completed in a similar manner, thereby blocking out a large block of coal in the end of the mine gallery. This co-al block may be further sub-divided, if necessary, inany desired manner by cutting additional :kerfs in the way previously described, as by cutting a plurality of vertical kerfs intermediate of and parallel to the side wall kerfs. The individual blocks may then be detached from their rearward connections with the coal bank by using the. expansible breaking device I6 inserted in a kerf.l Prior to breaking the block, a coal drag orpanmay be placed in the undercut kerf under the'blockpto receive it when it has been detached. Preferably, however, I employ the kerf cutter 4 itself forthis purpose, as shown in Fig. 5. The detached block may then be removed by -dragging Yit out on the pan or kerf cutter. f Y v K To utilize the machine in longwallminingthe kerf cutter 4 is swung sidewise angularly until it occupies a position substantially at right angles' to the longitudinal axis of the boom 5. -This is done by releasing the lock for the cutter blade, the lock being re-applied when the desired position has been reached. Thekerf cutter is ylowered to the oorplevel by operating: they boom, swinging cylinders I2 and the kcutterhead tilting cylinder I4.. The sumping cutis nowinade into the side wall of the galleryv by'. anchoring the machine by the hydraulic jack I against thel mine ceiling andswinging .the kerf cutter-into-y the side wall of the mine gallery by actuating the pelling the entire machine longitudinallyalong.

the mine trackway. The kerf cutter thereby cuts a kerf at the floor level deep in the side Wall of; the mine gallery. The long-wall top kerfis cut in precisely the same manner as the bottom kerf,

after the kerf cutter has been Yinverted by the use of the cutter head rotating' cylinders in the manner previously described in 'makingthe end wall overcut.

rotating the cutter head B through a quarter turn so that the kerf cutter plane is vertical, and then operating the boom swinging' cylinders I2 and the kerf cutter tilting cylinder I4.

The improved methods of mining with the coal cutter of the invention differ radically from the conventional methods used with the coal mining machines of the prior art. 'I'he ordinary coal mining machine is merely the mechanical substitute for the hand mining by coal picks that was performed earlier in the development of the coal mining industry. Ordinarily these hand or machine minings were horizontal kerfs made in the face of the coal seam usually at or near the floor line, but occasionally in the top or at points intermediate of the seam. In addition to these horizontal minings, vertical minings were made in some cases to better facilitate the removal of the coal. The purpose of either hand- The vertical or shearing kerfs inl the side wall are also made in the same manner, as the vertical kerfs in the end wall, namely, by

madeor `machine-made. minings has hitherto always .been-that of creating a cavity in the face of the coal seam to` permit expansion of coalexposed to the blasting force of explosives used. and to relieve the otherwise dangerous pressure acting against and tending to crush the sidewalls and. roof of the working place. Due to the high expansibility of explosive gases, their pressure is exerted' even. after the coal hasv been-dislodged. The degree of relief afforded dependsupon the size of the mining whichafter more than fifty years of mining machine operations has become quite generally standardized at the Width of. six inches. No explosives, however, are used in the improved method of coal extraction, utilizing the presentimachine, hence no such expansive vspace is necessary. v4In contrast, the coal is dislodged bya hydraulic breaker pad IIiv inserted inv the kerf. cut bygthe mining machine. The instant the coal is dislodged,l the dislodging pressurey ceases to act, because ofthe relative inexpansibility ofthe breakerpad liquid. The block-.forming and breaker pad system of mining thus in.- troduces a new method. Figs. 3 to 8 inclusive show details of the application of the invention to the block-forming system of mining. This system consists ofV dividing the face of the seam into relatively large blocks or cubes of coal to be subsequently, by means of the.

hydraulic breaker pad I6, dislodged and sufliciently fractured for convenient loading. From Fig. 3 it is obvious that to perform.th'eblockforming operations necessary to make this'system of mining practical necessitates ythe'use of amachineembodying flexibility and range such as has;

prices much below the cost of production. This fact precludes the use of modified conventional wide-kerf mining machines for carrying outv the extensive cutting operations necessary for dividing the seam into blocks according to the blockforming system. Furthermore the block-forming system involves the making of kerfs either khorizontally or vertically at points longitudinal with or atan rangle to the projected course of the work-` ing place, hence'the function of cutting becomes quite diffeernt from that of conventional mining machines. The present coal mining machine, em-

bodying greater flexibility, range and capacitylto-y perform has been invented to meet these special I needs which conventional machines cannot satisfy. rIn the example shown in Fig. 3 a number of pressure to the kerfs thus formed. An exampleV of this is illustrated in Figure 4, where the floor has been removed to provide head room, as is' sometimes required in extremely thin seams of coal. These kerfs are shown (Figure 3) in the floor near the face of the seam.

Figure 5 shows the manner in which the key kerf vcutter is thrust beneath the key block while the back end of the latter still remains attached to the coal seam. The block is conveniently dislodged by application of the breaker pad I6 in the top kerf. In some cases, however, the weight and gravitational leverage of the over-Y hanging coal block itself, where the coal parts freely from the roof, makes the top kerf unnecessary, in which case pressure is applied sidewise in the vertical kerfs to dislodge the cut blocks. Afterv the key block has been dislodged the machine is propelled away from the face by its tractive eiort and in so doing it withdraws the key block. Figure 5 also shows the dislodged coal as itwould appear after the application of pressure coming from the use of the hydraulic breaker pad. Figure 6 shows the application of the invention to a working face by so-called pillar extraction. This is used Where it isv desired to carry the track on the side of the working face to permit the subsequent mining of the sidewall adjacent thereto. Figure 8 shows a modified procedure wherein the wing blocks are removed in two following operations. The blocks are removed in the order ac#A cording to the numbers as given.

`In using the apparatus and method in connection with mechanical loadingrdevices, and also as an optional procedure with hand loading, it has been found valuable to form the downwardlydirected diagonal kerf (Figure 1). This kerf is cut by raising the boom 5 and operating the head tilting mechanism. 'I'he downwardly-angled kerf vapproaches the horizontal lower kerf at its backward endwithin the coal bank. The keris thus made serve to outline the upper and lower. faces of a wedge-shaped block of coal. The main block of coal above this wedge-shaped block may then be detached from its rearward connection with the coal bank by employing the hydraulic breaker pad I6 deep within. the upper horizontal kerf, as previously described. The main' block comes to rest on top of the wedgeshaped block, the latter being then removed by the loading machine, excavated by hand, or withdrawn by any convenient means, such as by a coal drag. When this is done, the mainblock then falls outward from the coal bank onto the floor of the mine chamber, either breaking itself up by its fall or else being easily broken up by hand or in connection with the operation ofthe mechanical loading machine. This procedure causes the blockrto fall outward into the mineV chamber by its. own action. c

While there is in this application specifically describedy one form which the invention may assume in practice, it will be understood that this form of the same is shown for purposes of illustration and that the invention may be modified and embodied in various other forms without departing from its spirit or the scope of theappended claims.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is: 1. A method of mining coal comprising forming a kerf in a mine wall by the swinging movement of a kerf-forming member, retaining the kerf-forming member in said kerf while dislodging the coal, and withdrawing the coal from the mine wall upon said korf-forming member.

2. rA methodof mining coal including forming a kerf in a mine wall by the swinging movement of a kerf-forming member, retaining the kerfforming member in said kerf while dislodging the coal above said kerf, and withdrawing the dislodged coal in blocks from the mine wall upon the kerf-forming member by withdrawing said korf-forming member from the mine wall.

3. A method of mining coal including forming a plurality of kerfs in a mine wall by a plurality of swinging movements of a kerf-forming merri-A ber, Vretair'iing the kerf-forming member in the lowermost kerf while applying a dislodging force to the coal at a point remote from said kerf- Vforming member, dislodging said coal in blocks said kerf-forming member and the coal block thereon simultaneously from the mine wall.

5. A method of mining coal including forming in a mine wall parallel horizontal kerfs and parallel vertical kerfs to outline the top, bottom and sides of a block of coal attached at its rear side to the mine wall, retaining the kerf-forming member inthe bottom horizontal kerf while applying a dislodging force to the coal at the topof the block to dislodge the block from its attachment to the mine wall onto said kerf-form-f ing member, and withdrawing the block intact from the mine wall while supported onsaid kerf forming member.

' JOSEPH F. JOY; 

